Flu-related absenteeism a growing worry

Because northern Nevada residents

have been slow to get flu shots this year,

health officials are beginning to have mild

worries about a widespread outbreak of the

flu early next year an outbreak that

could lead to higher absenteeism at area

businesses.

"When people are not protected,

they're putting themselves at risk," said

Wendy Latham, R.N., assistant division

director for community and clinical health

service at the Washoe County Health

Department.

A flu-like disease that kept many workers

at home for a day or two in recent

weeks only hints at the larger problems

that would accompany a flu outbreak.

Latham said last week that it's impossible

to predict the severity of the flu season,

which typically begins shortly after the

first of the year and extends into February.

But this much is known: Area residents

have been slow to get their shots.

St. Mary's Health Network, for

instance, has 8,000 doses of flu vaccine

remaining from the 27,000 it ordered. At

this time last year, St. Mary's had 3,000

doses remaining from a similar order of

27,000.

Mary Bristol, a wellness specialist for

St. Mary's, offered some guesses at the

reasons for the slow vaccination activity:

* There have been no reported cases of

flu in the region.

* Unusually warm autumn weather

kept residents from thinking about wintertime

diseases.

* Ample supplies of vaccine this year

meant that residents didn't feel the same

urgency as past years, when short supplies

raised the danger that clinics would run

out before procrastinators could get their

shots.

Northern Nevada employers increasingly

recognize the threat to productivity

posed by the flu, said Lori Mitchell, who

oversees wellness programs for Washoe

Health Systems.

Washoe Health, she said, has conducted

flu-shot clinics at about 300 companies

this year and the number grows

each year.

The recent cases of a flu-like bug, she

said, only hints at the problems that

might accompany a wider outbreak of

influenza.

The flu, Mitchell said, sometimes can

develop into pneumonia, a malady that

keeps workers off the job for two or three

weeks.

There's been no lack of promotion by

area health agencies to get residents to

flu-shot clinics.

The Washoe County Health

Department, for instance, won the donation

of a Volkswagen Beetle from Lithia

Motors and painted the car as The Flu

Bug. The health department has used

The Flu Bug to promote awareness of the

vaccination campaign, said Phil Ulibarri,

who handles marketing and outreach for

the department.

St. Mary's, meanwhile, has promoted a

campaign in which residents get $5 off

the price of flu shots if they bring a can

of food for the needy.

"It's not too late to inoculate," said

Mitchell, who said the concern about low

vaccination rates is shared by the Centers

for Disease Control, which sees similar

lack of urgency among people nationwide.

Should a widespread outbreak occur

next year, the health department has a

plan and a modest supply of vaccine to

protect residents at particular risk.

Where you can get a flu shot

Still need a flu shot? Here's some clinic times:

* On three Tuesdays Dec. 17, Dec. 31 and Jan. 7 Washoe Health will

provide shots at Park Lane Mall from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

* On three Saturdays Dec. 21, Dec. 28 and Jan. 4 St. Mary's will provide

shots at its Wellness Center inside Scolari's at Caughlin Ranch. The clinic

will run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day.

* From 4-6 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 18, 8 a.m. to noon on Friday, Jan. 3,

and 3-6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 8, St. Mary's will offer vaccinations at its

Community Wellness office at 745 W. Moana Lane.